


Mystery of Lahlu

by Serriya (Keolah)



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game)
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Elves, Family, Gen, Original Universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 1995-01-01
Updated: 1995-01-01
Packaged: 2017-11-14 04:30:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/511337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keolah/pseuds/Serriya
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A mysterious child searches for her family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mystery of Lahlu

Once upon a time, there was a great city called Adamant, for it was strong as the capital city of Dalizar, home of the Wind-Riders. In this city lived a boy named Silver.

At the age of seventeen he was apprenticed to the wizard Wilhelm. He learned well the arts of the Three Lights, learning of their properties and uses. In his studies with Master Wilhelm, he discovered that he was indeed linked to the Three Lights. In particular, he was linked to a tiny portion of the Earth Light that controlled lightning. Master Wilhelm helped enhance that link, and Silver eventually became independant in his further learnings. His power expanded to some degree to include some forms of fire, much as witnessed by lightning creating flames when it struck.

He lived in the City of Adament for a long time, but later moved to the City of Pearl. He once commented that two great wizards living in the same city was rather silly.

In the City of Pearl he met Natalie, Elen's daughter. They wedded but had only two children. Most Wind-Riders had three or four at the least. Arvell and Tara seemed to make up for it in their skills with their hands, but neither was linked even remotely to the Lights. Silver was slightly disappointed, so he chose to have no more children, not wishing to be disappointed again. When the attackers came to destroy the Wind-Riders, and espesially Elen's close relatives, Silver was forced to leave Natalie and his daughter behind him, Arvell leading him away. Then his amnesia set in.

Unknown to Silver, Natalie survived the massacre of the Wind-Riders. She was taken prisoner by the Flylish attackers and kept in Castle Selnus, where she had Silver's third child. Her daughter Tara was killed in the massacre, but this child (no one knew until she was far along in her pregnancy) she named Lahlu in the Elvish tongue, meaning Hopeful.

Natalie died while attempting escape from Selnus, but her daughter Lahlu, barely one at the time, was saved by a group of humans on a hunting trip. Their leader, whose wife had died three years earlier and had no heir, adopted the child and loved her as his own. Not knowing what the child was called, he named her Mystery. 

Mystery was raised among the humans just north of the Reh'Tain Mountains, and treated as one of them. She did not learn that she was truly an Elf until her thirteenth birthday, although she always knew she was different. Then, she decided to seek her own family. She searched in vain for ten years. Then, just as she was beginning to get a possible lead to her father's fate, a message came that said that Bagrin was dying. She hesitated, then abandoned the search for her true father to see the only real father she had ever known one last time. She spent his last few days with him. After staying in Forcewater for a year and a month, she again returned to the quest for her family. 

The quest continues today. The only name she found was Natalie, and she had to bribe the Selnus guards to reveal that much. She could find no one who had ever heard the name Natalie.

Her search finally brought her to the city of Fehndarlai. The city was so large that she was sure someone there would know the name Natalie. When she learned that none did, the search looked hopeless. Mystery stayed in Fehndarlai, working as a weaver, a basket-maker, a cook, and whatever other work she could find. She married an Elf named Trebor Cunackan. By the time she was thirty, she had three children. The first had hair as black as night and eyes as silver as stars. Her name was Thertang, thunder-girl. The second had hair as golden as the summer sun and eyes of amber pale. She was Leeriala, golden daughter. The last was dark in hair and eyes alike. His name was Sedrik, shade-dark.

When she was sixty, and her children full-grown and long-scattered, the people of Fehndarlai saw that she had not aged a day since she had arrived there. They were terrified of her, and called her a demon. They chased her out of town. Trebor didn't care what she was. She was the mother of his children and he loved her all the same. He went with her into exile until his death twelve years later. He wanted her to find Thertang, Leeriala, and Sedrik. He wanted her to find the children.

Mystery knew she would not be welcome back in Fehndarlai. She recalled that Sedrik said he was going someplace in Rascalanse. Mystery traveled the long and perilous road of the Thorndell Fault and arrived in Wishingsdale soon after. She began asking around for information on Natalie or the location of Sedrik. She gained nothing about Natalie, but learned that Sedrik lived in Lolonder, to the west. Mystery traveled to Lolonder and was soon reunited with her son. For the purposes of concealing her age, she said that she was his cousin. She found that Sedrik had married a human woman named Flowerfall. He had a young child named Sediro. 

In secret, Mystery told her son what had happened since he left the city. He was astonished at her story, but knew it as fact for he saw her, still youthful, before him. He wondered if the same would happen for him and his sisters as well. She advised him to move within the next ten years so that he wasn't discovered. He took her advise and heeded it. She then went to the city of Scalyr to seek out Thertang. She soon found her, living to a half-elf named Sedder Adrian, though she was married to Sedder's brother Terrin, who lived in Flyland. She didn't reveal any relationship between them to the undead youth, but instead brought them alone before her in conversation.

She asked if either had heard legends of Elves that lived forever. Sedder said that he had heard something similar once. Then Mystery asked about the name Natalie. Sedder started at the named. "Natalie!" he cried. "Silver's dead wife? How would you know about her?"

"You've heard of her?" cried Mystery, excited.

"Yes I have! She was one of the Wind-Riders, a people who live in the caves of Dalizar, in the Dreawk cliffs. I know. I have seen them. I met Silver's son Arvell."

"Sedder, I am Natalie's daughter."

"And therefore Silver's daughter."

"And I am Thertang's mother. The Dreawk cliffs, did you say? You think I should go there to find the Wind-Riders?"

"That would be where to find them."

Mystery agreed to depart within the week for Dalizar. Sedder said nothing of how she may be able to scale the Cliffs. She arrived at the cliffs a few weeks later. She found a small tunnel leading into the caves and entered without hesitation. Soon lamps appeared before her. She asked if this was Dalizar. It was. She wanted to see the ruler of this kingdom. She was taken to Therrin.

Mystery was told her true name, Lahlu, and was brought into the Wind-Riders by leaping off the Haunted Balcony. She was caught by a giant eagle named, appropriately, Mystery.

It was the year 3327, after the Fourth Council of Races. Lahlu learned the history of her family, and met her brother. She learned that neither of Silver's other children had inherited his power, so it was unlikely that she would have. But she decided to speak to a wizard whose name was Wilhelm.

"Good morning, wizard," she said as she entered his cavern.

The old mage grunted a reply. "What person are you?"

"I am Lahlu Rider of Mystery, daughter of Silver the Great and Natalie, daughter of Amaketh and Elen the Excellent, son of Jarren Marren and Jammick's daughter, and Label of the descent of Perrin son of Terace."

"Really, woman, I am a Wind-Rider. I know the primary geneology," he grumbled, though he did seem impressed at the lineage. "I did know Silver in his youth. You are his daughter? I thought his daughter was killed in the Flylish raid."

"I am his younger daughter," explained Lahlu.

"Didn't know he had a younger daughter," muttered Wilhelm. "Stand on that blue stone there. Let's see how your power comes up. Too bad I lost my three-stone years ago. Handy thing, that three-stone."

Lahlu tolerated the wizard's rambling and stood on the blue stone. Wilhelm handed her a blue sphere and told her how to hold it. She did so, and the ball began glowing a pale blue, no brighter than a firefly in the light of day. Somewhat disappointed, Lahlu prepared to leave.

"Hey, girl! That's just your air-magic. Come try the water stone next." Wilhelm was irritated.

The Rider went over and stood on the blue-green stone. Wilhelm repeated the procedure with the sphere. This time it was little brighter. Then he tried her earth-magic, which was slightly brighter, and her ice-magic, which was slightly dimmer. Her change-magic was non-existant, and her foretelling very pale. She had a fairly strong seeking power, as well as a respectable binding power. She had little gift for language or speech. Then Wilhelm directed her to a red stone, which she knew instinctively was fire.

This time the fiery red light was blinding, and tinged with a bit of golden light. Wilhelm had to grab the flamestone from her before both of them were blinded.

"So you are a Fire Mage," hissed the wizard. "With lightning magic as well. The lightning alone is greater than all your others combined. You are indeed your father's daughter."  
"So what does this mean for me?"

"Do you seek your father?" asked Wilhelm. Lahlu nodded. "Then go. You have enough magic to find one so close in blood. More than enough. More than I do. I cannot help you."

So Lahlu left the City of Adamant to seek Silver the Great, the Lightning Mage who was her father. She stood on the Cliffs of Sky, gazing over the sea and clouds and earth, lit by the fiery sun. The sea was cold, like ice it was. But she did not fear it. Her spirit was hot, burning within her. Then she felt her father's presence. Sheenvale. Far to the south. Lahlu leapt from the cliff and thrilled through the air, and Mystery mysteriously appeared below her. South, she told the bird. And the bird took her south.


End file.
